Within us is the Soul of the Whole,
the wise Silence, the Universal beauty,
the eternal One.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Monday, February 8, 2010
Poetic Emotion
Memories
Gaze upon the Earth
with misty eyes.
While willful wind wails
and hears it's cries.
With strength yet at easeGaze upon the Earth
with misty eyes.
While willful wind wails
and hears it's cries.
bidding it's homage
from the bending trees.
Soon to come is the morning Light.
softly shadows of darkness
slip out of sight.
Oh who put the Moon's trace
and the Sun back in it's place.
In the glory of the dawn
I finally see your face.
Across the bridge of memory
time and space cease to be.
And bring the joys of yesterday
into the realm of today.
And loneliness of age is no more
all become as it was before.
When happy tears like tidal Seas
flood our Hearts with memories.
~ Robin Ann
The Presence of Now
What is true? What is false? We are often confronted with this question. The answer is always the same. What is true will always exist. Truth is eternal as is Love, Spirit, and Peace. They go on and on. On the other hand, falsity is ephemeral. That is, it is subject to the laws of time and will someday be no more. The past, and future are also subject to the laws of time and are therefore false. The Present is always "right now," and the only tense that is true. The past is like a dream. What little we remember of it is shaded by distorted memories about what we thought happened. Our memories are not all that reliable. We tend to make the past what we would have it be. It is only a partial recollection of our perception of what we thought happened, just as it is in the dream. We put a great deal of importance in the past because we were taught to do just that. We study history, tell of where we've been, what we have done, read the newspaper's reports about what has taken place and believe that we are protecting ourselves in the future by learning from the past.
If the past is gone, and not the truth, our dwelling on past events is keeping us in non-reality. So it is also with the future. We pretend to know what is in store for us, we worry about it and wait in expectation for what is to come. Yet we keep attempting to think we know what the outcome may be, with eager anticipation, or fearful dread. Our waking and sleeping hours are consumed in past and future thoughts. But in the Present moment, there is only Peace. That is all that can be in a place where past grievances, associations and pain can not enter. The Present is where the fears and expectations of what is yet to be is not a factor, so only pure Peace abides there. How can one get to this space? By being very quiet,very still; through the practice of Meditation.
We have two options. We attempt to stop the invading thoughts which are always future or past thoughts, or we allow the thoughts of Present Awareness to totally fill our minds. The first way is accomplished through repeated Meditation practice in any of the traditional forms. Try this: Close your eyes for a moment and try to still your mind. Become Aware of the things that show up in your mind. When past thoughts arrive, "push" them to the left; when future thoughts come, "push" them to the right. That way you can begin to stay visually "centered" in the Present.
This is the basis of Meditation.
The second way is to focus your attention on a thought that is Eternal. These thoughts incorporate Love and Peace, Joy, Spirit, and so on. Begin with a thought like Love and allow related thoughts to fill your mind. Then continue unfolding thoughts that relate to Love such as affirming "I am Love," "I am the essence of Love," etc., until you become lost in the thought of Love. A mind filled with eternal thoughts can not be host to past nor future. It is there that you find true Peace, leave the past behind, experience and become in touch with Reality and higher Consciousness.
This is the basis of Being.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
The Art of Being Present
What moment do we have other than this?
The past is an illusion long gone. The future is not yet made manifest.
Each moment of our lives lands as a dew drop upon the lotus. Delicate, unique, irreplaceable. To look upon it with full attention and unfettered gaze reveals its precious and inimitable perfection. This magic moment, a crack between past and future, is an existence; never seen before, and never to be seen again.
Can we not Be as the lotus enveloping the drop? Does the lotus analyze and compare?Is the lotus anticipating the dew drops yet to be? Or does it embrace this diamond ~ liquid, delicate, and evanescent, and open its petals to experience the All?
Can you recall in your life a sudden revelation of beauty, deep serenity, a spontaneous Awakening to Unity, excitement, joy, and vibrancy that stilled your mind and opened your heart?
Ever ponder how you were able to perceive this flash between your history and your expectations?
What is the Secret to reentering this often all too brief state of Acceptance and Bliss?
The key is to both embrace and let go of each moment simultaneously. To participate and witness at the same time. In doing this, it is perfectly possible to create a process of attentiveness to, and reverence for, your everyday experience. Being Present to the experience of our life, moment by moment, can help Awaken our capacity for extraordinary joy, freedom, compassion, and creativity.
All authentic spiritual traditions have as part of their process a centering of Consciousness on the power of Now. This process of freeing ourselves from our patterns, habits, compulsions, and unconscious drives is often referred to as “burning karma.” Our karma is the result of our actions, experiences, thoughts, emotions, and expectations. In freeing ourselves from these self-imposed strictures, we develop the skills to create anew, rather than re-create over and over again what no longer serves the growth of our Spirit. This freedom from karmic patterning results in self-knowledge, wisdom, and being Present.
Find an object. A burning candle, a flower, a dew bespeckled spider’s web. Still your mind and observe. What do you perceive?
Use all your senses. Maybe write down your observations. Give yourself lots of time, don’t rush about with mental questing. Open yourself to the experience and to your observations.
What do you notice?
Take a deep, conscious breath and observe again. Pay attention with your mind. Assimilate with your body. What do you feel?
Through this process of stilling the mind, calming the emotions, and opening the doors of perception, you may become able to see a world in a grain of sand, heaven in a wild flower, and hold life in the palm of your hand.
The past is an illusion long gone. The future is not yet made manifest.
Each moment of our lives lands as a dew drop upon the lotus. Delicate, unique, irreplaceable. To look upon it with full attention and unfettered gaze reveals its precious and inimitable perfection. This magic moment, a crack between past and future, is an existence; never seen before, and never to be seen again.
Can we not Be as the lotus enveloping the drop? Does the lotus analyze and compare?Is the lotus anticipating the dew drops yet to be? Or does it embrace this diamond ~ liquid, delicate, and evanescent, and open its petals to experience the All?
Can you recall in your life a sudden revelation of beauty, deep serenity, a spontaneous Awakening to Unity, excitement, joy, and vibrancy that stilled your mind and opened your heart?
Ever ponder how you were able to perceive this flash between your history and your expectations?
What is the Secret to reentering this often all too brief state of Acceptance and Bliss?
The key is to both embrace and let go of each moment simultaneously. To participate and witness at the same time. In doing this, it is perfectly possible to create a process of attentiveness to, and reverence for, your everyday experience. Being Present to the experience of our life, moment by moment, can help Awaken our capacity for extraordinary joy, freedom, compassion, and creativity.
All authentic spiritual traditions have as part of their process a centering of Consciousness on the power of Now. This process of freeing ourselves from our patterns, habits, compulsions, and unconscious drives is often referred to as “burning karma.” Our karma is the result of our actions, experiences, thoughts, emotions, and expectations. In freeing ourselves from these self-imposed strictures, we develop the skills to create anew, rather than re-create over and over again what no longer serves the growth of our Spirit. This freedom from karmic patterning results in self-knowledge, wisdom, and being Present.
Find an object. A burning candle, a flower, a dew bespeckled spider’s web. Still your mind and observe. What do you perceive?
Use all your senses. Maybe write down your observations. Give yourself lots of time, don’t rush about with mental questing. Open yourself to the experience and to your observations.
What do you notice?
Take a deep, conscious breath and observe again. Pay attention with your mind. Assimilate with your body. What do you feel?
Through this process of stilling the mind, calming the emotions, and opening the doors of perception, you may become able to see a world in a grain of sand, heaven in a wild flower, and hold life in the palm of your hand.
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